ObituariesOtis Hibbard Jr. Otis Franklin Hibbard Jr., age 63, of Dover, went to be with the Lord, Thursday, July 6, 2017. He was born July 7, 1953, in Shawnee, Okla. Otis always took a positive approach to life and had an incredible sense of humor. His family will greatly miss his amazing ability to tell a good story. He was a member of Victory Missionary Baptist Church for 25 years, a member of the River Valley Writers Club, The Legion of Honor Kiwanis...

Ladd honored at building dedicationThe Russellville Board of Realtors recently participated in a dedication to honor Russellville's Bill Ladd. Bill was a Realtor, a Real Estate educator, an avid volunteer, an area business owner, husband, father and friend. On Tuesday, June 20, several members of the Russellville Board of Realtor traveled to Little Rock to participate in the dedication of a classroom in the Arkansas Realtors Association building to Ladd, who passed away in fall...

Post 20 Patriots hand Harrison 9-2 lossThe Russellville American Legion Post 20 Patriots baseball team defeated Harrison 9-2 in seven innings Friday at Tech Field. Harrison took a 1-0 lead after the top of the first, then Russellville went on top for good with three runs. Michael Mullen singled, and Grayson Stevens scored on an error at second base. Carter Thessing scored on a single by Nick Hagerty, and Mullen scored on another error, this time at shorstop for a Patriots 3-1 margi...

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Courier staff reportsThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Biologists measuring benefit of stocking bigger brook troutHEBER SPRINGS -- The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC) Trout Management Program worked with the Greers Ferry National Fish Hatchery in Heber Springs to clip off a fin on each of 14,300, 9-inch brook trout to be released into the Bull Shoals and Norfork tailwaters later this month. The loss of a fin may seem counterproductive to fish survival, but the fin-clipping effort is part of a larger project to determine the effectiveness of large...

Maintenance to close part of Highway 27Maintenance work on State Highway 27 near Dover will require a closure of the highway, according to Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department (AHTD) officials. Beginning Monday, July 10, State Highway 27 will be closed approximately 0.1 miles east of State Highway 7 in Pope County. Traffic will be controlled using flaggers, traffic barrels and warning signs. Weather permitting; the closure will continue through Friday, July 28. A de...

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COURIER STAFF REPORTSThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Names of homicide victims releasedDANVILLE -- The names of the victims of a July 2 double homicide were released Wednesday by Police Chief Rick Padgett. According to a press release, Phyllis Ann Chambers, 55, and Martha Jane Veazey, 63, of Danville were discovered inside a residence located at 706 West Highway 10 at about 6:41 p.m. last Sunday. Their bodies were sent to the State Crime Lab in Little Rock to determine cause of death. Padgett said previously the investigation is...

Community people: Steve Wiman, Melanie Goad, Kevin Massey, Steve Zimmer and Connie Zimmer.THE COURIER / Submitted The Lions Club recently presented the Russellville Children's Department with its Summer Reading grand prizes, solid oak children's bookshelves. Children had to read 200 or more books to have their name entered in a drawing for the bookshelves. The bookshelves will be given out at their finale from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. today. Pictured are (from left) Steve Wiman, Lions Club member, Melanie Goad, children's librarian, Kevin...

State Capitol Week in ReviewLITTLE ROCK -- Thanks to conservative budgeting and a rebound in consumer spending, the state ended Fiscal Year 2017 with a surplus of $15.7 million. Individuals and businesses were spending more, so sales taxes were strong at the end of the fiscal year. Employment figures were strong, which meant that Arkansans were paying income taxes. The strong finish to the fiscal year is an abrupt turnaround from late April, when state agencies were noti...

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FROM SENATOR GREG STANDRIDGEThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Help clean Arkansas River todayLake Dardanelle State Park will host the Arkansas River Cleanup held in conjunction with American Rivers' National River Cleanup from 8-11 a.m. today. Volunteers are needed to help with the effort, Park Director Sarah Keating said. "Your efforts will improve the health of wildlife, people and habitat of our local waterways," she said. Volunteers can check in at the Lake Dardanelle State Park Visitor Center beginning at 8 a.m., where they will ...

First American Grinder contest scheduledTwo locals are taking to the Russellville Skate Park on South Jonesboro Avenue, next to Kroger, to raise money for the Disabled American Veterans (DAV). On Aug. 5, Jacen Moon and Tristan Presley will host a family friendly skate park competition as a way to raise funds for the DAV. Moon, who comes from a military background, stressed they wanted to raise funds for the DAV and get the community involved. “Our main goal is to get more people wil...

McDonald visits with kidsRonald McDonald from McDonaldland recently visited the Pope County Library for two appearances as part of its Summer Reading Program. While keeping with the theme, Build a Better World, McDonald talked to children about the importance of giving back through three means: time, talent and gifts. He explained by helping others through giving time, using talents to cheer others up and giving gifts as in donating toys and clothes they don’t need an...

Building owners await the results of inspectionThe owners of a building on North Commerce Avenue that collapsed last month are waiting on results from a weekend inspection. Betsy McGuire, Main Street Russellville executive director, said Thursday she and city officials are still waiting for a report from an architect and structural engineer that inspected the former Leonard's Hardware building at 118 N. Commerce. The owners are Jimmy and Amanda Armstrong of the building, which housed a vin...

Commissioners look at office spacesThe Russellville Advertising & Promotion Commission called a special meeting last Friday to look at some available office space on South Commerce Avenue. Executive Director Christie Graham said one building with 875 square feet would be leased at a cost of $625 per year or $675 for two years. Two other buildings would be in the $900 per year lease range. Alderman Robert Wiley asked why couldn't the church building, located behind City Hall the...

Authorities say man knocked out womanJeffery D. Haskins, 25, was arrested at approximately 12:30 a.m. on Wednesday after police stated he threw a woman to the floor during an argument. According to a police report, the man became angry and grabbed the cell phone from her hand and threw it against the wall. When she tried to lock him out of her residence, he allegedly kicked in the door and threw her on the floor, striking her head on the way down. The victim reported she became m...

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BY TRAVIS SIMPSON
simpson@couriernews.comThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Woman arrested following stabbingPolice said a woman stabbed a man in the right leg on Tuesday after punching him several times. Chloe A. Johnson, 19, was arrested at approximately 12:45 p.m. near the 1500 block of East 16th Street. According to a Russellville Police Department (RPD) report, the victim told police Johnson started punching him in the chest, so he "hip-tossed" her to the ground. When Johnson got up, she allegedly stabbed him in the right leg, just above the kne...

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BY TRAVIS SIMPSON
simpson@couriernews.comThe Courier Your Messenger For The River Valley

Church Happenings (070717)Sizzlin Summer Cinema Plumerville Church of Christ on U.S. Highway 64 will host a showing of “The Global Flood” at 7 p.m. Saturday. Camp meeting Falling Water Church will host an old-fashioned camp meeting at 7 p.m. today through Saturday. Day services will be at 10 a.m. followed by a free lunch. Prayer meetings will be at 4 p.m., Bible study will be at 5 p.m. and worship service will be at 6 p.m. For more information, call Pastor Leonard Chis...

Living on Purpose:There are times we become confused and will not be able to figure out a way to solve our problems. Life is not always a smooth interstate, and it's good to remember that God is with us when we encounter unexpected roadblocks and detours. In these stressful situations, we can know that delays do not necessarily mean denial but could be an opportunity for us to stretch our faith and learn more about trusting God. There is a fascinating story fou...